We do not want to be the trash can of middle Tennessee

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Why do we allow the importation of tons upon tons of waste into Marshall County?

Why do companies based as far away as Cranford, New Jersey; Mattoon, Illinois; Atlanta, Georgia; Tampa, Florida; Decatur, Alabama; and Lexington, Kentucky bring their waste into Lewisburg? Should we not take care of our own trash and tell others to solve their own waste problems? How will this imported waste affect our children and grandchildren? What problems are we allowing to fester within the ground of our beloved community?

Why do we tolerate the pollution to our land and water?

The state report, released on 4/26/2007, revealed that the level for one of the many contaminants from Waste Management landfill's discharge below the sediment basin (DBSB) into East Fork Globe Creek (EFGC), measured 18.0 mg/L. The recommended level of this contaminant for EFGC is 0.92 mg/L!

Would you serve your family beef that drank from the polluted East Fork Globe Creek? Would you eat vegetables and grains irrigated with water from the polluted East Fork Globe Creek? How do you know you do not?

Whom should we hold accountable?

During the April County Commission meeting, 11 commissioners voted in favor of the dump…… I mean landfill expansion (Yea for Waste Management, Inc!). Since that vote, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation released a scathing report of the pollution to East Fork Globe Creek (EFGC) caused by Cedar Ridge Landfill. Fortunately, these commissioners now have solid information that allows them the opportunity to reconsider their position before the May commission meeting.

Some will threaten that a vote against Waste Management, Inc. will mean taxation or the imposition of fees to fund taking out our own trash. We should ask the commission to re-examine their priorities, and fund this basic service from the existing budget before considering projects of lesser importance. We elected the Commission to manage within a budget, and good managers should not ask for a new tax or fee to fund what should be the most basic of services provided to the citizenry of this county.

A copy of this report is available to all Commissioners, and you can obtain a copy (as did I) at the Courthouse Annex. I encourage all to review the report, and discuss with your Commissioners the adverse impact this landfill is having on our community. Every concerned citizen should attend the May County Commission Meeting to witness how the Commission will address the landfill issue. For the Commission, voting not to expand the landfill should be a moral, not financial, decision.

Finally, we should thank the commissioners who had the courage to vote against the landfill expansion in April and hope they continue to support what is best for Marshall County.